Rand poised to surge if Zuma goes

The rand could surge if President Jacob Zuma is ousted by a motion of no confidence parliament on Tuesday, though gains would falter if Zuma survives the vote, analysts say.

The currency was the best performer among 31 major peers Monday after national assembly speaker Baleka Mbete said parliament would vote by secret ballot Tuesday. The news boosted overnight volatility in the rand to the highest since early May on a closing basis.

Here’s what analysts and investors had to say about the currency’s prospects ahead of the ballot:

While the private vote is seen as more likely to oust Zuma than would be the case with a public ballot, he will probably get through it because “he’s survived so many scandals already”, said Win Thin, head of emerging market currency strategy at Brown Brothers Harriman.

The market would cheer any result that sees Zuma’s term end prematurely, as this has been marred by a number of scandals and bad economic performance

“If the vote fails, then fade” the gains, Thin said. “But if it passes, ZAR is off to the races.”

Zuma has staying power, and “that is negative for the ZAR”, said Cristian Maggio, head of emerging market strategy at TD Securities in London.

If the motion fails, he sees the rand targeting R13.63/US$; if it passes, he predicts the currency will strengthen to R13 or beyond.

While the president will likely stay in power, the chances of Zuma’s ouster have “increased significantly” with the secret ballot.

“If the motion is approved, then USD/ZAR will tank. The market would cheer any result that sees Zuma’s term end prematurely, as this has been marred by a number of scandals and bad economic performance.”

‘Very unlikely’

The president is “very unlikely to be voted out”, said Kieran Curtis, a money manager in London at Standard Life Investments. “It’s so unlikely that a party would vote against its own leadership in parliament.”

If Zuma loses the vote, “the rand would immediately strengthen” past R13/$. Curtis is “pretty neutral” on rand assets, which are performing well at the moment. He’s concerned about potential ratings actions toward the end of the year and their possible effect on investor flows.

Jacob Zuma

“The rand will crash through 13,” if the no-confidence vote passes, said Kevin Daly, a portfolio manager at Aberdeen Asset Management. If Zuma stays in power, the rand will soften slightly.

“There’s more upside that can come out of here, because Zuma being forced to resign is not priced. Most people expect him to survive this vote. A lot of the bad news is already priced in.”

If leadership changes in December, the rand could strengthen, he said.

The dollar/rand rate is approaching the 61.8% Fibonacci support of last week’s range at R13.17. Its next significant support is at R13.16 to R13.14, comprised of the 100/21-DMAs, cloud top and 1 August low. — Reported by Lananh Nguyen and Robert Fullem, (c) 2017 Bloomberg LP